Turtles killed for flippers

Recently, Panama’s Marine Resources Authority (ARAP) seized a fisherman in possesion of turtle flippers in Coquira port in Chepo. The rest of the body of the turtle was nowhere to be found.

For artisanal fishermen, turtles represent big profits through the sale of their flippers, shells and meat.

Flippers are in high demand on the open market where they are usually destined for human consumption.

But turtles are already threatened by natural predators, climate change, environmental degradation, unregulated tourism and the collection of their eggs.

Now, the increase in hunting is threatening their very existence.

ARAP has recently started working with Conservacion Internacional and the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute on a project entitled “Actions for Conserving Marine Turtles on Key Beaches in the Pacific”.

This project includes research, a public educational campaign and re-equipping the Marine Station in Los Santos.

Five of the seven species of marine turtle still exist in Panama, including the carey turtle which is on the endangered species list.

Turtles have been in existence for 150 million years. They contribute to the productivity, stability and health of the marine ecosystem by feeding on the abundant organisms to be found in shallow areas and then excreting the carbon residue into deeper marine water.

Pacifists by nature, turtles make easy targets and are rarely defensive. The best way to help protect them is to denounce all sales of turtle products, report illegal fishing, prevent pollution in rivers and the sea, and by not consuming any product that contains turtle meat.

Mystical Big Turtle

Meet Big Turtle. Please view this in large size (and surely you will not sleep tonight). This guy was waiting for us in our driveway on Sunday. I think this is a giant snapping turtle, but I invite others' ideas on what type turtle this is. Hir shell was a weathered olive green color. He looked prehistoric.

My guess is he weighed 30-35 pounds. Mind you, our backyard is an ancient woodlands forest so we see all kinds of wildlife near our home. Big Turtle was not at all frightened by us, and he allowed me to take several pictures of him, including some full body shots. He appeared to us on the very first day of summer. In many cultures throughout history, animals were thought to possess special powers as sources of healing, insight, and transformation. Here is what one source on the Web had to say about the spiritual symbolism of turtles.

"Turtles have been and are held sacred in many traditions. In the Far East the turtle shell is seen as a symbol of heaven while the squarer underside is symbolic of mother earth. And through other traditions such as Native American turtle is a symbol of mother earth and our ability to find happiness on mother earth. The turtle is a slow moving creature on land and is never in a rush.

All you need to do is find the pace that is appropriate. Like the knight of pentacles in a Tarot deck turtle energy is steady, earthy and always accomplishes what they set out to do. If you align with the energy of turtle you are assured completion. It teaches to go with the flow and be happy with the pace that your life is taking. Do not try to push it faster than is natural or you may reach your destination too early and feel you missed something along the way. Turtle teaches to try and enjoy the journey as much as the final achievement.

To focus too much on the end of something means you will often find yourself dreaming of the future, which will leave you ungrounded and unhappy. So have around you the symbol of turtle when you wish to remain grounded and take joy in what you have been given. Also because of their great shells turtle symbolize our ability to protect ourselves. When you have done a certain amount of personal development and thinking you come to realise that everything is connected. And we start to see ourselves reflected in the actions of others.

But sometimes some people have their own history and their own anger and it is just best to get out of their way. That is where the shell of turtle may come in handy. You don’t have to take responsibility on for everyone. Sometimes just leave them to get on with it. And if they get too close use turtle energy to give them a little snap so they know you are there."

Albino Baby Turtle Swims With His Friends

Nature offers a beautiful contrast. A baby albino turtle swims will his fellow green sea turtles in a pond at Khram island in Thailand. Reuters says the hawksbill baby turtles hatch and are kept at the navy's conservation center each year.

They are kept here until the turtles' shells are strong enough to protect them from predators. When they are about six-months-old they are released to the sea.

New net timer could save sea turtles from drowning

Fishery managers trying to protect rare sea turtles from dying in fishing nets have tapped a Cape Cod company to build a device they think can help balance turtle protection with profitable fishing.

That time is crucial if a turtle gets snared in the nets dragged behind fishing trawlers. Federal research indicates the vast majority of sea turtles survive entanglement but only if the net is pulled up in less than 50 minutes.

The “tow-time logger” is a 7-inch, silver cylinder that attaches to fishing nets and records how long the net stays underwater.

“Turtles have also been around since the time of the dinosaurs,” said Elizabeth Griffin of the environmental group, Oceana. “They’re cool animals that I think most people want to see continue to exist.”

With the logger, regulators can avoid other, potentially more onerous, restrictions on perpetually struggling fishermen such as shutting down fishing areas or requiring turtle-saving gear that doesn’t work well in all nets. In fisheries where they decide time limits would work best, they wouldn’t have to depend on an honor system to make sure nets are pulled up in time.

The device’s early tests at sea have been successful, and work is ongoing to toughen it for the real-life rigors, such as being banged on fishing boat decks. The company expects it to cost between $600 and $800, an expense that would fall to fishermen.

The logger was built under a $25,000 federal contract with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration by Onset Computer Corp., a Bourne-based supplier of data loggers for energy and environmental monitoring. It starts recording water depth every 30 seconds once the net drops below two meters. If the net stays under beyond a preset time limit, the logger records it, and the infraction can be discovered when regulators download its data.

Some environmentalists say turtles shouldn’t be kept underwater at all because even relatively short times of being trapped underwater without oxygen hurt them.

Even when the logger is perfected, regulators know limiting how long the nets stay underwater is no cure-all as they devise rules, which they hope to propose for public comment by 2010, to meet a new federal requirement to protect sea turtles from trawler fishing nets.

The data logger at least makes briefer tow times a feasible way to protect turtles, if researchers can sort out what’s safe, she said.

Griffin says there’s also not enough data on how trapped turtles fare in colder waters, so no one really knows how long they can be kept under and survive.

“It’s a bad idea,” said James Fletcher, a veteran fisherman and now head of the North Carolina-based United National Fisherman’s Association.

Fishermen are skeptical. They say short tows aren’t practical in most fisheries, such as those in deeper waters, where a worthwhile catch is impossible if the nets must constantly be pulled up.

“The idea is that we’re looking at providing options to the managers in the future,” Milliken said.

“Nobody’s going to love the idea,” acknowledged Henry Milliken, a biologist with the National Marine Fisheries Service, which is part of NOAA. But he added fishermen might prefer limits on how long the net can be underwater to harsher alternatives, such as closing fishing areas.

The turtle most frequently caught in trawl nets in the Atlantic is the loggerhead, the threatened 250-pound giants named for their relatively large heads. In U.S. waters, every sea turtle is listed as either endangered or threatened, so any turtle deaths in fishing nets hit the populations hard.

As the NMFS tries to determine which steps will or won’t work, it’s held public meetings this spring from New York to Georgia.

The excluder devices have had success in some fisheries, including the Southeast’s shrimp trawl fishery, but bigger species, such as horseshoe crab, monkfish and flounder, can bounce out along with the turtles and make the nets far too inefficient.

The most common way to protect turtles right now is the Turtle Excluder Device, often a circular, barred frame attached near the front of fishing nets. The bars are big enough for fish and other sea life to slip through, but too narrow for turtles, which bounce out of the net before they get caught.

But with regulations coming, DiDomenico said his best hope is that regulators don’t broadly force a turtle-protecting solution, including the time logger being developed, on a diverse fleet.

Greg DiDomenico of the Garden State Seafood Association, a New Jersey trade group, said since the new rules will apply to fisheries from Cape Cod to Florida where the turtles swim whatever shakes out is bound to be felt industry-wide. That includes “huge negative impacts on some fisheries,” he said.

“It’s not one-size-fits-all,” he said.

Sea Turtle Conservation by Royal Thai Navy

The Royal Thai Navy is doing a commendable job by protecting sea turtles at their Sea Turtle Conservation Center.

Some interesting features of sea turtles and Sea Turtle Conservation Center are:

• Sea Turtles
  • Khram Island is the nesting site for green sea turtles, where hundreds of sea turtles come ashore to lay their eggs
  • Sea turtles in Thailand are being killed by humans for their meat, eggs and their shells which are considered precious
  • Also large number of sea turtles die by getting trapped in fishing nets during migration
  • To save the sea turtles, the Royal Thai Navy has Sea Turtle Conservation Center
• Sea Turtle Conservation Center
  • A research institute of Thai Navy at Sattahip with turtle breeding farms and nursery ponds
  • The eggs of sea turtles are identified by observing the softness of the sand and the eggs are then moved closer to the beach side for further nurturing
  • Eggs are kept inside sixty centimetre deep sand pits for hatching after noting down the number of eggs, the date of nesting and the expected birth date
  • After birth, the new born turtles are taken to tanks for a wash to remove the sand and then are provided with anti-fungus treatment to keep them healthy
  • For almost six months, the baby turtles are looked after and grown up turtles are then released into the sea
  • The center also provides valuable information on sea turtles through lectures, video presentation and exhibitions
  • The center is also opened to visitors

Rare turtle travels 7,000 km to breed!

A rare leatherback turtle, which has existed since the time of the dinosaurs, has been found to be adept at making the longest ocean journey to breed in warmer places.

Fitted with a satellite transmitter by Canadian scientists to track its journey, the turtle - which is the also world’s largest turtle growing up to two metres long and weighing up to 500 kilogramme - travelled over 7,000 km to be found on the coast of Colombia in South America.

The 149-centimetre-long turtle named Nueva Esperanza kept sailing for over a year to reach the coast of Colombia, the Canadian Press quoted researchers at the Canadian Sea Turtle Network in Halifax.

The researchers said their counterparts in Colombia tracked the device and found the turtle after the lengthy journey to be nesting on a beach. The turtle makes the ocean journey to breed in the warm beaches of the Caribbean and South America.

The researchers said the data from the transmitter on the turtle will help them study the journey pattern of the species and take steps to preserve them.

After exisiting for hundreds of millions of years, it is now an endangered species in Canada.

Turtle Tunnel

Florida is receiving 13 billion federal stimulus dollars to build roads, feed seniors, and save jobs. But 3.4 million of Florida’s cut is going to build a tunnel to help turtles cross a busy highway. The turtle tunnel has some taxpayers outraged.

US Highway 27 near Tallahassee is said to be the deadliest road in the world, that is for turtles. The highway divides two lakes. The turtles use one for nesting.

Dr. Matt Aresco is an environmentalist.

“Most of the road kills I find out here, they are not even pass this white line.”

Dr. Matt Aresco has been on a 10 year mission to help the turtles cross the road. His hard work will pay off this September, when 3.4 million federal stimulus dollars will be spent to build a tunnel under the highway.

“Even if you are not in favor of wildlife conservation, which a major part of this project is, would you want to hit a 400 lbs alligator with your car at night or have a turtle the size of a cinder block come through your windshield.”

The project has its critics. Pace Allen, a member of several anti-tax groups says the turtle tunnel is a waste of money.

“It’s outrageous, unbelievable, but I think there is a real opportunity for people to standup and say look at this example our governments, federal, state and local are totally out of control.”

“The turtle tunnel is just one of more than 520 road and bridge projects the state plans to spend build with stimulus dollars.”

Leon County Commissioner Cliff Thaell says the project will create jobs.

“We have a lot of people hungry for work and ready to earn a living. This job is going to put people back to work and put food on their table.”

And the dish won’t be turtle soup.

The Turtle tunnel made the list of 100 questionable spending projects released by Oklahoma Senator Tom Coburn. The list was sent submitted to the presidents’ office, which responded by calling the report “flawed.”

Public Art Turtle Bench for the Community

A new public art piece is being created for the Diamondhead Education Center Outdoor Classroom in Burnsville. Through a residency supported by the M.W. Savage Elementary School PTO and lead by community artist Anne Krocak, fourth grade students designed and made mosaic tiles which will be embedded in the shell of the turtle. During this process students also learned about collaboration, the field of public art, art history, community service, and art critique.

The Turtle Bench will be an eight-foot-by-seven-foot structure about five feet high. It will be embedded with a series of specially designed art mosaic and ceramic tile pieces. Krocak is working in collaboration with School District 191 Community Education to create the public art project.

Fourth grade mosaic art: M.W. Savage
Elementary School fourth-graders created
mosaics to contribute to a community turtle
bench to be completed this fall. The bench will be
at Diamondhead Education Center in Burnsville.

Throughout the next three months, classes and construction opportunities will be held for community members as well as through community education programs such as Project KIDS preschool and school age programs, The Edge, The Gifted and Talented Institute, Tiny Tots, Adult Basic Education (ABE) and English as a Second Language (ESL), and the Burnsville Senior Center.

Online database makes tracking sea turtle nesting habits easier

BRUNSWICK — Nesting numbers are rising and residents and sea turtle enthusiasts alike are anxious to know which of Georgia’s barrier islands will be in the lead this year.

And a new online database will now make this friendly competition simpler to follow.

The database, housed at seaturtle.org, tracks nests in North Carolina, South Carolina and Georgia. Visitors to the site can see the number of nests by location as well as other information, including nest losses and false crawls, where a female turtle comes ashore and then leaves without nesting. Information is updated in real-time as members of Georgia’s Sea Turtle Cooperative enter their findings.

Last year marked the 20th anniversary of the cooperative, a milestone for sea turtle conservation. Coordinated by the Wildlife Resources Division of the Georgia Department of Natural Resources, the group of volunteers, researchers and biologists from various agencies monitor turtle nesting activities on Georgia beaches.

The new database will make it easier for the cooperators to share their information.

“The new database management system is exciting because it allows us to monitor sea turtle nesting in real-time and make more timely management decisions,” said Mark Dodd, Senior wildlife biologist with the Department of Natural Resources, Nongame Conservation Section and Sea Turtle Coordinator. “In addition, it allows cooperators who are often isolated on barrier islands to see what is happening on nearby beaches.”

Sea turtle nesting data is crucial in monitoring populations, formulating protective regulations, making management decisions, and maximizing reproduction for recovery.

To view the new database visit seaturtle.org/nestdb/index.

Organizations and agencies that team with Wildlife Resources for the Georgia Sea Turtle Cooperative include Caretta Research Project, Cumberland Island National Seashore, Georgia Sea Turtle Center, Lodge at Little St. Simons Island, Little Cumberland Island Homeowners Association, Sea Island Co., St. Catherines Island Foundation, St. Simons Island Sea Turtle Project, Tybee Island Marine Science Center, and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service — Savannah Coastal Refuges.

Drive careful, avoid creating roadkill

FORSYTH — Forget the chicken: Why did the turtle cross the road?

In spring and early summer, probably to find food, a mate or a nest site.

Particularly after rain, turtles and other wildlife wander, sometimes venturing by day onto county roads and state highways that double as death traps for the unsuspecting creatures. The roadkill lineup varies from diamondback terrapins on the coast to fledgling mockingbirds along back roads in the Piedmont.

Senior wildlife biologist John Jensen of the Georgia Department of Natural Resources encouraged drivers to be alert.

Legendary Lake In Vietnam Being Gently Cleaned For Giant Turtle

Researchers have started testing "SediTurtles," a device they say will defend a renowned Vietnamese turtle while at the same time clean the lake where it lives.

Experts debuted the sediment-consuming machines as part of a cleanup program on Hoan Kiem Lake, located at Vietnam's capital.

The Lake of the Returned Sword houses a mysterious turtle that symbolizes Vietnam's exertion for independence.

The children’s story of the 15th century rebel leader Le Loi says that he used a sword to fight off Chinese invaders. After Emperor Le Loi went boating on the lake one day, a turtle swam up, took his sword and swam to the bottom, safeguarding the weapon for the next time freedom needed a hero.

Sightings of the turtle are considered lucky, especially when they land on national events. The lake’s historical value therefore needs a special cleanup plan, and the teams of Vietnamese and German experts have plotted cleaning the turtle's home with smallest possible risk to it.

Leonhard Fechter, of Berlin's Herbst Umwelttechnik GmbH, knows that people worry about the turtle, so the SediTurtle was made with "soft" technology as not to hurt the animal.

"We are sure we won't touch the turtle," he said.

The device has a hose that floats on the water attached to a metal box. A dredging device, hidden below the surface, removes sediment from the bottom by sending it to a different machine that removes sludge from the water.

"That device is moving very slowly. That big turtle can easily escape," said Celia Hahn, the project manager at the Dresden University of Technology.

Over time, the sediment in the Hoan Kiem Lake has increased and the water level has declined, specifically in urban areas. The experts note that the lake is only five feet deep, but the majority is sludge created by industrial pollutants.

Draining the lake cannot be done because it would harm the water body's ecosystem, experts insist.

"The big turtle is living from crabs or small fish," Werner said, noting that sediment removal would occur slowly over time.

Christian Richter, from FUGRO-HGN GmbH, said his firm has already reviewed the lake's geology. They will map parts of the lake where sediment can be extracted without harming the lake.

"Even if they start immediately, they would need at least one or two years for the removal," Richter said.

Poachers take eggs from four sea turtle nests

Photo provided by Mote Marine Lab

Mote Marine Labratory's Sea Turtle Patrol volunteers examine a turtle nest cavity on a Venice beach from which poachers stole the eggs on June 6. Poachers have taken eggs from four loggerhead sea turtle nests on Sarasota County beaches in the past week. Photo made available by Mote Marine on June 12, 2009

By Kate Spinner

Published: Friday, June 12, 2009 at 1:10 p.m.
Last Modified: Friday, June 12, 2009 at 1:10 p.m.

Four loggerhead sea turtle nests were robbed of their eggs by poachers this week, according to Mote Marine Laboratories in Sarasota.

Volunteer sea turtle monitors for Mote found the nests dug up and empty of eggs on Casey Key and Venice Beach.

Loggerhead sea turtles are protected under the Federal Engangered Species Act and state imperilled species laws.

Poaching carries a federal fine of up to $100,000 and one year in prison and state fines of up to $500 and an additional $100 for every stolen egg.

According to Mote, law enforcement authorities do not know who stole the eggs, which are often sold on the black market.

Sea turtles lay an average of about 100 eggs per nest, but only one in 1,000 eggs produce a hatchling that will survive into adulthood.

If you encounter someone harassing a sea turtle, digging a sea turtle nest or handling sea turtle eggs, contact the Sarasota County Call Center at 941-861-5000 immediately.

Very few people are authorized to relocate sea turtle nests. Those that are will be able to show proof.

Turtle stranded, staff snaps to help

Advance photo/Jamie LeeA snapping turtle became trapped in the brick-enclosed garden of a Great Kills dental office last week.

STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- Thank you, patients and staff at the Great Kills dental office of Frank J. DeGaetano, D.M.D., and Lindsey Alexander, D.M.D.

After being notified about a stranded snapping turtle, office manager Phyllis Garr of Eltingville and other staffers ventured outside to keep the ambling creature out of busy Amboy Road late last week.

A passerby must have had similar concerns because after the initial rescue crew relocated the testy turtle to a patch of lawn, the animal was placed inside of a brick-enclosed garden to keep it from straying into traffic.

Photo courtesy of Phyllis GarrSouth Shore section reporter Jamie Lee helps to rescue the ornery amphibian, which was released into a nearby pond.

Unfortunately, the 45-pound, foot-and-a-half long snapper felt trapped. Unlike Yertle (of Dr. Seuss creation), it was hoppin' mad.

Ms. Garr called 12 different agencies, including the Staten Island Zoo in West Brighton and the city's Center for Animal Care and Control in Charleston.

While several people said they would take the turtle if it were dropped off to them, none had the capabilities of embarking on a turtle rescue.

"We were worried that he was going to get run over," said Ms. Garr. "But when he couldn't get out of the garden - and he didn't seem to be too happy about that - we didn't know what to do."

In the end, Ms. Garr, a patient and an Advance staffer were able to corral the turtle with some heavy-duty gloves and a cardboard box and re-release it on the banks of nearby Wood Duck Pond, located at the end of Acacia Avenue.

-- Reported by Jamie Lee

Illegal pet turtles being sold on streets

There seems to be a glut of illegal turtles on the streets of Baltimore. Very tiny ones.

Baltimore police seized 28 young turtles this week from street vendors selling the animals as pets, a practice that poses health and legal risks, authorities say.

City police have seized 96 turtles in the past two weeks. Two men were arrested, one May 30 in the 100 block of N. Eutaw St. and the other Monday in the 1700 block of Pennsylvania Ave. They are being charged with attempting to sell an exotic animal and vending without a permit. They could face fines of up to $1,750 and one year in prison.

Maryland Department of Natural Resources Officer K. Michael Lathroum says most of the turtles are coming from turtle farms in Louisiana and Florida."

According to Lathroum, street vendors are able to purchase the turtles wholesale for about 50 cents each, and usually end up selling them for $10 to $15 each. The turtles measure about 1½ inches in length, making it easy for vendors to have a large number of them at a time.

Although it is illegal in Maryland to possess a turtle whose shell is less than 4 inches wide, there continues to be a thriving market for the small, red-eared sliders such as the ones the police seized.

People who buy them as pets may not realize that the turtles can grow to be up to 1 foot long and that they pose the risk of spreading salmonella to children.

The Baltimore City Health Department recommends washing your hands thoroughly after handling reptiles and other pets or coming into contact with their water, food or housing containers. Do not feed your pet or clean its housing area where you prepare your food.

Turtle Crossing Merit Badge

If you live in Florida, you have no doubt already earned your helping a turtle cross the street merit badge a hundred times over. Once again I was called into action. Along with requisite consumption of two very strong cups of coffee, this mornings duties included helping a turtle navigate a daunting curb after crossing the street. Although I sure this Florida box turtle (Terrapene carolina bauri) would have been quite capable of navigating along the curb until he came to grass again; I really didn’t want him to spend that much time on the roadway with the all the summer school traffic coming in this morning. And of course it gives me an excuse to share him with you.

A very easy to ID turtle in the field; the Florida box turtle has a very dark brown carapace (top of the shell) with bright yellow striations. This little guy was also easily identified as a male from the deep indentation at the rear of the plastron (belly of the shell). Another neat feature of the box turtle is the hinge on the forward portion of the plastron which allows the box turtle to nearly seal himself in completely.

Not previously noted in any historical wildlife sightings in the Back Woods; this Florida box turtle is a welcome addition to our little forest home.

Help turtles and participate in an ecotourism adventure

If you love seeing sea turtles, the special turtle-friendly tours offered by SeeTurtles.org may be just the thing for you. They offer trips in Baja California Sur, Costa Rica, and Trinidad and Tobago, both independently and in conjunction with Earthwatch, an organization which began offering ecotourism volunteer opportunities before "ecotourism" was a word.

Teens are invited to join a special "Teen Team" in Trinidad to protect the local nesting grounds of the Leatherback Sea Turtle. While the new hatchling at right is just a few inches long and a few ounces in weight, when adult, these turtles may be 6 ft or longer and weigh up to 2000 pounds.

For the more serious eco-tourists, SeeTurtles.org can also coordinate other volunteer opportunities where fit and willing participants will be trained in turtle conservation and can lend a hand on actual turtle rescue and protection assignments. Be warned though - these are actual jobs that must be done, not just busy work for volunteers. Few things will stop the turtle team from making their appointed rounds. Participation fees run about what you would pay for an exotic adventure, but the altruistic bragging rights you gain are, as they say, priceless.

For more info: SeeTurtles.org

Visit To Turtle Rehabilitation Centre

Bandar Seri Begawan - The Teacher’s Activity Section of the PIHM Secondary School recently organised a visit to the Turtle Rearing and Rehabilitation Centre, Fisheries Department, Ministry of Industry and Primary Resources at Jalan Pantai Serasa, Muara.

The visit was aimed at inculcating love of the environment and supporting the government in protecting the turtles.

During the visit, the delegation learnt about the importance of protecting endangered species such as turtles.

The Brunei waters are one of the turtle’s migratory areas rich with its natural coral reefs.

The visitors were given the chance to get close with the turtles by touching and holding the seacreatures and acknowledged the hard work and dedication of the centre’s staff in protecting the endangered species.

Also present during the visit was the principal of the school Madam Lim Siew King, deputy principal Hj Said bin Hj Md Salleh, education officers, teachers and their family members led by Hj Azrin bin Hj Tunjang, Awg Misli bin Hj Moksin and Dk Rohana bte Pg Ahmad Damit. – Courtesy of Borneo Bulletin

Wash. family to keep endangered turtle

RIDGEFIELD, Wash., June 8 (UPI) -- Washington state officials say a family will be allowed to keep their pet, a rare western pond turtle, but the animal will be owned by the state of California.

Barry Mason of Ridgefield and his wife Chae Yon said their family adopted the turtle when they encountered it as a baby 21 years ago while camping in Northern California. They said the turtle apparently was taken from their home during a birthday party for their son, Shon, in April, The (Vancouver, Wash.) Columbian reported Monday.

The reptile turned up in May at a pet store in Hazel Dell, Wash., but the family ran into an obstacle while reclaiming their beloved Mr. Turtle -- his species is endangered.

Washington wildlife officials wrote Mason that it has decided to allow the family to keep the turtle under a few strict conditions: The animal will belong to the state of California, it cannot be transferred to another family without the department's approval, and its final resting spot after its death will be determined by California and Washington wildlife officials.

Officials said they took into account the amount of time Mr. Turtle has spent in captivity, as well as its special connection to Mason's son, Chol, who died of complications from a transfusion of HIV-positive blood a few years after he and his brother discovered him.

"We are making this exception due to the circumstances regarding the captive history and care for this turtle since 1988," the department said in a letter to Mason.

Rare Rescue: Turtle Brought Back to River in Chippewa Falls

Chippewa Falls (WQOW) - It was an ordinary day that turned into a rescue for a Chippewa Falls woman. She was heading down to the bike trail to enjoy a ride on a nice day, when she spotted an unusual creature on the road.

"I was on my way to the bike trial near (highway) 178 in Chippewa and traffic came to a complete stop," says Peggy Simon. "I could see there was a great big turtle in the road."

So, Peggy did what any curious citizen would do and grabbed her camera. "I was scared, I was trying to get nice shots, and then he started moving towards me and it really scared me, because I know that they can bite," says Peggy.

The turtle made it to the side of the road with a little help. Peggy says, "A guy in a pick-up had a shovel and picked him up with the shovel." "The turtle did kinda snap at him," she adds.

With police on the way, Peggy threw her keys on the ground in an attempt to play with the turtle, later realizing it might be tough getting them back. When the officer arrived, it was time to get the turtle home. Peggy says, "I waved the officer down and he got out and studied the situation, we need a big box, "I got one in my vehicle".

After using a push broom to get the turtle in the a plastic bin Peggy had in her truck, they drove it down to the Chippewa River. "I never did get the bike ride in because I spent the morning with the turtle," says Peggy.

Has Your Turtle Ever Done This......

Have you ever seen your turtle do something strange? Well, the chances are it was trying to tell you something! Here are some of the common things to look out for:

Turtle eats gravel or sand in large quantities.

If your turtle keeps trying to eat gravel or sand in large quantities then it suggests either you are not feeding it enough or it has a lack of mineral content in it's diet.

Replace sand and gravel with larger stones that are too large to fit inside your turtles mouth. Provide vitamins, calcium and trace elements in your turtles diet, ensure you are feeding your turtle the correct amount.

Turtle swims constantly back and forth

If your turtle is constantly swimming back and forth along the side of its enclosure, or if it is regularly trying to climb out of its enclosure your turtle may not be happy in its surroundings.

Is the water and air temperature correct? Is the amount of water and land space right? Is the current in the water too strong or too weak? These are all questions you need to ask yourself.

If your turtle has just been placed in to a new environment it may swim back and forth as it explores its new home. After a day or two it should have calmed down. Swimming back and forth can also be a sign that your female turtle is ready to lay her eggs and is searching for a suitable egg deposit site.

Standing Tall, Legs Extended, Head Held High

When your turtle is standing tall with its legs extender and head held high it is assuming a posture so that it can take a good look around. On land this position also makes it easier for your turtle to empty its bowels and in water it may be reaching its head out of the water to breathe. This is perfectly normal behavior.

Burrowing in to the Ground

If your turtle burrows in to a hiding spot and has also stopped eating it may be showing signs it is ready to start hibernating. This happens in autumn when the days are shorter and sun is low in the sky. At other times in the year this behavior can indicate a problem with the turtles health and you will need to take it to the veterinarian for a check-up.

If you found this information interesting you will love my full guide. With more behavior explanations like this as well as sections on how to feed the right amount, provide the right living space, hibernating and breeding your turtle, and curing illnesses and injuries it is your complete turtle care guide.

For Turtle Lovers Only

My friend Sue Pierce sent me more photos of the Snapping Turtle she revisited yesterday in Dunham's Bay near Lake George. She said she found this particular snapper, nicknamed "Mohawk" for the green mossy growth on its tail, in the exact spot she found him last Saturday when we paddled together on the turtle survey. Her photos are so good, I just had to share them with turtle lovers everywhere!

There's no place like home. Here's where Mohawk hangs out.

As Sue says: Who wouldn't love this face? ET phone ho-o-o-o-me!

Just hanging out, here in my spot.

How this turtle got its name: see the brush of green moss on the top of its tail?

22 sea turtles returned to ocean

TOPSAIL BEACH, N.C. -- With the pageantry of a high school prom, nearly two dozen sea turtles were returned to their ocean home on Wednesday in the largest single release from the Sea Turtle Rescue and Rehabilitation Center since it opened more than a decade ago.

The turtles - 14 greens and eight loggerheads - ranged in size from 20 to 200 pounds and represented about half the patient population at the turtle hospital. Founder Jean Beasley said she often compares the releases to parents sending their children off to college, happy that they're ready to face the world but keenly aware of the dangers it holds.

"It's a day of cheers and tears," Beasley said after the turtles had been sent swimming into the brisk, clear surf under a cloudless June sky.

Researchers say only one in 1,000 sea turtle hatchlings survive their first year of life, and one in 5,000 to 10,000 make it to maturity, which for some turtles takes 30 years.

North Carolina beaches are among sea turtles' favored nesting areas, and over the past couple of decades a small army of volunteers has developed to act as guardians of the beloved reptiles.

Nearly 100 people volunteer with the turtle hospital, the only one of its kind in the state. About half work in the 850-square-foot facility that houses the animals in tanks while they recover from illness or injury; the other half go on turtle patrols, walking the beaches during the annual nesting season and marking nests to protect them from molestation. Volunteers work long and odd hours, searching for nesting turtles in darkness or responding to emergencies at the hospital such as failed pumps and balky water heaters.

Most of the turtles rescued in North Carolina end up at the Sea Turtle Rescue and Rehabilitation Center, launched 12 years ago in hopes of saving a few animals a year.

It's been busier than Beasley ever expected. Over the past year, Beasley said, the center has worked with 54 turtles, so many Beasley had to convert a bedroom for interns into a temporary turtle infirmary. In November alone, she said, the facility took in some three dozen green turtles that were stunned by a cold snap that chilled the water before they could reach the warm Gulf Stream.

Beasley used Wednesday's release as a chance to ask for help for the center, which is trying to raise $350,000 to build a new, larger hospital.

The hospital gained international attention last month when it took in a rare Kemp's Ridley turtle that had traveled far beyond its range and washed up on the coast of England in 2007. After spending two years in recovery there, it was flown to North Carolina in April and brought to Topsail Island. Named Wilhelmina, the turtle is scheduled to be released next week.

Hundreds of people lined up on the beach to watch Wednesday's release or help carry a turtle to the water.

The animals were brought from the hospital in a convoy of trucks. Smaller green turtles rode on the laps of volunteers, wrapped in damp towels. The larger loggerheads rode in the truck beds, surrounded by volunteers who patted their shells and kept them hydrated and calm.

The turtles were then carried down a roped-off avenue toward the surf in a processional that included a child escort who carried a placard with each turtle's name. As the handlers walked along the rope lines, school children, their teachers and parents could see the patterns on the turtles' shells and watch their flippers flapping.

Top 5 Turtle Care Tips

Hi Readers,

Just to follow up on the information you have hopefully read by now, here are my 5 top tips for keeping your turtle healthy:

1. Keep the water clean! Probably THE single most important aspect of turtle care is clean water. Never let the water become too dirty as your turtle spends a lot of time in it and can easily become ill from poor quality water. Just remember this rhyme - "The solution to pollution is dilution"
   
   
2. Know your turtles needs! Every turtle is different, come like nice calm water with plenty of land area for basking, others prefer moving water and do not need much land. It's very important to know exactly what conditions keep your turtle happy because a happy turtle is a healthy turtle.
   
   
3. Make sure your turtle has enough room! Turtles grow incredibly quickly and it's quite common for some species (such as red eared sliders) to grow to 30cm (12 inches) in length or more. For this reason the larger the aquarium, the better as it will keep your turtle happy and save you money in the long run.
   
   
4. Understand your turtles behavior! Like all animals, turtles cannot talk. However, this doesn't mean they cannot communicate with you. There are some very tell-tale signs that turtles give both for when they are happy and when they are unhappy. If you understand what your turtle is trying to tell you it can save you money and save your turtles life.
   
   
5. Know what temperature your turtle thrives in! Did you know that most turtle illnesses are caused by poor water quality or incorrect aquarium temperatures? It's true and just a few degrees of different in water temperature can make the difference between a healthy turtle and an unhealthy one.

Remember, the full Turtle Guide Book covers all of this and a lot more. If you are not sure what kind of needs your turtle has, how large it will grow, what temperature suits it best or anything else about keeping your turtle healthy then my guide is perfect for you.

Click here to read more about the full Turtle Care Guide

Four Eyed turtle at the New York Turtle & Tortoise Society Annual Show

Me and my wife went to the New York Turtle & Tortoise Society (NYTTS) Annual Show last weekend. This show is different from various reptile shows as no turtles were bought and sold, and is comprised of turtle owners showing off their turtles. There wasn’t as much variety of species or as many turtles as I was expecting to see. Tortoises and land turtles greatly outnumbered aquatic turtles. The most common specie in the show was the chinese box turtle, which is actually a pretty hard specie to find and purchase. Me and my wife fell in love with them and, space allowing, we would love to get one or two of them. The highlight of the show was a grown (though not fully grown) sulcata and red foot tortoise freely roaming the grounds. Over all, I enjoyed the show. Heck, I have fun anywhere I get to see turtles!!! Anyway, here’s some photos of a four eyed turtle (an endangered specie) from the show. four-eyed-turtle-at-nytts-annual-show-1.jpg four-eyed-turtle-at-nytts-annual-show-2.jpg four-eyed-turtle-at-nytts-annual-show-3.jpg four-eyed-turtle-at-nytts-annual-show-4.jpg four-eyed-turtle-at-nytts-annual-show-5.jpg four-eyed-turtle-at-nytts-annual-show-6.jpg I’ll share more photos and some video I took from the show in the coming weeks.

Sea Turtle Lays Eggs On North Beach

PADRE ISLAND - The discovery of a Kemp's Ridley Sea Turtle Nest is a special event for the people at the Padre Island National Seashore.

A discovery made Monday morning was no different, but they are pretty shocked by where the turtle chose to lay its eggs.

Beachgoers on North Beach thought they were in for a quiet morning of sand and surf, but got a rare sighting of mother nature instead.

A group of seagulls gave away the spot where a Kemp's Ridley Sea Turtle was laying its eggs.

"She looked like she was dancing when she was covering it up, tapping on top of. Then, she just went around to cover it up really good and then she just went into the ocean," North Beach visitor Maribel Perez said.

After taking some pictures on their cell phones, they called in the professionals, who used a large stick to find the outline of the nest.

After a little digging, they found 85 eggs, an average number in an unusual location.

Experts say to date, there is no record of a Kemp's Ridley Sea Turtle nesting in the bay.

"This is not normal by any measure. We usually see all our nests out on the Island proper, not here in the bay," National Seashore's Shawna Ertolacci said.

From there, the eggs will go to Padre Island National Seashore where they will spend the next two months in an incubation facility before being released into the gulf.

As for the people who got to watch history in the making, they'll go home with some pretty cool pictures to prove it.

Giving endangered turtles a head start

The issue

The northern red-bellied cooter, an endangered species of turtle native to Plymouth County, is only the size of a quarter after hatching. It is often a meal for predators before it can reach maturity. In addition to its small size, the turtle is also hindered by a shrinking habitat, which has relegated it to a few small ponds. Nearly a quarter century ago, the species' population had dwindled to 300.

The solution

MassWildlife stepped in with a program called "headstarting" that removes the turtles from the wild for a year and raises them in the safety of aquariums at schools, animal sanctuaries and wildlife centers around the state. At the end of that period, caretakers bring the turtles to MassWidlife's Westborough headquarters to be weighed and measured to make sure they've grown enough to survive in the wild. The animals are then released back into their ponds.

What's next

This year's crop of turtles is a little smaller than last year, said Tom French, assistant director of MassWildlife's Natural Heritage and Endangered Species Program. But the 149 program graduates of 2009 should be fine, he said, adding "they have a good probability of growing up to be adults." Given the success of the program - French said he's seen turtles from the program's beginnings grow to be 16 to 19 years old - the system won't change much in the future. "Consistency is a positive thing," French said.

Janine's Blog ≫ Sea turtle nesting

Last night we went to the beach in hopes of witnessing a sea turtle nesting. We have been a couple of times in the past few weeks, with no success. Last night we got lucky and sat for a couple of hours watching an enormous female Loggerhead turtle excavate her nest, lay eggs, and return to the sea. It was an amazing experience!

We were walking along the beach when we spotted the tell-tale tracks leading from the water up the beach. The tracks of a sea turtle resemble that of a bulldozer- like a huge tread mark. We carefully made our way up toward the dune and spotted the turtle digging her nest. We sat very still and kept a respectable distance away. Rich's video camera has a large zoom lens and IR so we were able to see her clearly although we were 15' to 20' feet away. I have posted a few video clips and stills below.

Excavating the nest





She continued digging for about twenty minutes and then began to lay eggs.







Eggs being deposited into the nest.



After she had finished laying eggs, she began to fill in the nest chamber and cover the eggs with sand.



Finally, satisfied that the eggs were well covered, she heads back to the sea.







She quickly disappeared below the waves.

It was such a privilege to watch her nest. We are thrilled with the experience and glad that I can share the video clips with you.

Hibernating Your Pet Tortoise

Tortoises are one of the most popular kinds of reptiles kept as pets. Although tortoises are portrayed as being easy to keep, many suffer from ill health and ultimately die because their owners are ignorant of the correct husbandry requirements of tortoises.

One of the biggest stumbling blocks is winter hibernation. Some (not all) species of tortoise hibernate for several months during the year. Pet owners that incorrectly prepare their tortoises for hibernation risk their tortoises dying during, or just after hibernation.

Which species of pet tortoises need to hibernate?

Not all species of tortoises hibernate. Tortoises from temperate climates will hibernate for several months out of the year (3 months on average), whereas tropical tortoises do not need to hibernate. The following species of tortoises commonly kept as pets should be hibernated:

• Spur-thighed or Greek Tortoise (Testudo graeca)
• Hermann’s Tortoise (Testudo hermanni)
• Marginated Tortoise (Testudo marginata)
• Horsfield’s or Russian Tortoise (Testudo horsfieldi)
• North American Box Turtles: Carolina or Eastern box turtle (Terrapene carolina carolina), Three-toed box turtle (T. c. triunguis), Ornate box turtle (T. ornata), and the Florida box turtle (T. c. bauri).
• Hinge-back Tortoises: Bell’s hinged tortoise (Kinixys belliana), Eroded hinged tortoise (K. erosa), Natal hinged tortoise (K. natalensis), Home’s hinged tortoise (K. homeana).
• Padlopers: Greater padloper (Homopus femoralis), Parrot-beaked tortoise (H. aureolatus), Karoo tortoise (H. boulengeri), Speckled padloper (H. signatus), Nama or Berger’s tortoise (H. bergeri).

Which species of pet tortoises should not be hibernated?

Never hibernate a tortoise if you suspect it may be a tropical variety. If you are unsure about the species you own, consult a veterinarian or tortoise specialist. The following tropical tortoises SHOULD NOT be hibernated:

• African spurred tortoise (Geochelone sulcata)
• African leopard tortoise (G. pardalis)
• Red Footed Tortoise (G. carbonaria)
• Yellow Foot Tortoise (G. denticulata)
• Burmese Brown Tortoise (Manouria emys)

How do I decide whether my tortoise is fit to hibernate?

Even if your tortoise belongs to a species that commonly hibernates, if it is sick or underweight you should NEVER attempt to hibernate it. Forcing an ill tortoise to hibernate can be a death sentence. Thus, you should decide at least 2 months before the onset of winter (not the week before!) whether your tortoise is healthy enough for hibernation.

Tortoises need adequate reserves of body fat to live off of through winter – if these reserves run out too early, the tortoise’s body will start using up the fat in muscles and internal organs, and eventually die. If your tortoise does not have adequate fat reserves at least a couple of months before hibernation, it will not have them by the time of hibernation.

Pet owners should go through a pre-hibernation health check to ensure that their tortoise is fit for hibernation: examine the eyes for swelling or discharge, the nose for discharge, the cloaca for signs of infection, the legs for any unusual swellings or bumps (e.g. abscesses), the ears for signs of abscesses, and the inside of the mouth for signs of mouth-rot. If you do not feel confident performing this exam yourself, consult a veterinarian with experience dealing with reptiles.

How should I feed my tortoise before it starts hibernating?

As autumn approaches and temperatures decrease, tortoises will gradually reduce their food intake (thus, if they are underweight at the end of summer, they will not gain any more weight before winter). By the time a tortoise enters hibernation, its gastrointestinal tract should be free of any undigested food material.

A tortoise that has been fed in the last month to 6 weeks should not be hibernated, or should have hibernation delayed. It is quite common for owners to kill their tortoises by giving them “one last meal” before they begin hibernation. Note that although tortoises should be denied food, owners should still bathe their tortoises and encourage them to drink.

What kind of quarters does a hibernating tortoise require?

Failure to provide adequate protection during hibernation is one of the biggest killers of captive tortoises. There are a number of methods of hibernating your tortoise – if you have used a particular method successfully, stick with the one you are familiar with. If you have never hibernated a tortoise before, then this procedure is suggested:

1. The following materials are needed: one larger box and one small box made of either wood or heavy-duty cardboard, insulating material such as wood shavings/chips, Styrofoam chips, shredded paper, etc., and a thermometer (maximum-minimum reading thermometers are recommended).

2. The tortoise should be placed in the smaller box with a couple inches of insulating material. This should be a fairly tight fit, allowing little movement.

3. Line the larger box with a thick layer of insulating material and place the smaller box within the large box.

4. Do not puncture the hibernating box with holes. Covering the top with newspaper and a sack should allow enough to air to filter through.

5. Use a thermometer to record the temperature of the hibernating box. Some people will actually tape the end of the thermometer probe to the tortoise’s shell.

6. The ideal temperature for hibernation is 5oC/40o F. However, a range of 0-10oC (32-50oF) is acceptable. Extremely cold temperatures can cause your tortoise to freeze to death, and excessively warm temperatures can cause your tortoise to prematurely exhaust its fat reserves or begin to wake up. If the temperature reaches unsuitable levels, move the hibernation box to a more appropriate location.

7. Tortoises should be regularly checked and weighed to ensure that they are not losing weight too rapidly – handling your tortoise while it is hibernating will not disturb it.

8. If your tortoise awakens during winter, or shows signs of urination, it should be allowed to come out of hibernation.

9. Three months is the average time for hibernation. Hibernation should not be allowed to continue until spring.

10. Box turtles usually require a more humid environment to hibernate in, and the period of hibernation may be shorter.

How do I wake my tortoise from hibernation?

As the ambient temperature increases, your tortoise’s metabolism will begin to speed up. Listen carefully for sounds of movement from the hibernation box – when you hear sounds that indicate your tortoise is emerging from hibernation, place the hibernation box near a heater, allowing it to gradually warm up. After a few hours, remove the tortoise and place it in a warm and bright environment. Examine the tortoise for any health problems (similar to the pre-hibernation check).

It is essential to get the tortoise to drink as soon as possible. This can be accomplished by resting the tortoise in a sink, bathtub, or container filled with an inch of tepid water. If the tortoise does not drink and flush out the accumulated waste material, it will feel disinclined to eat. Post-hibernation anorexia is a common condition of captive tortoises. If your tortoise is not eating within the first week of emerging from hibernation, it should be seen by a veterinarian.

There are a lot of factors involved in safely hibernating a pet tortoise. If you are unsure about your tortoise’s fitness to be hibernated, or the correct way to hibernate your tortoise, always consult a veterinarian.

90 Percent Chance Your Pet Turtle Has Salmonella

We usually focus on food-borne illness here, but when pets poise a serious threat to children due to salmonella we want to help get the word out.

HealthDay Reporter Steven Reinberg today wrote about the Centers for Disease Control finding that 103 children got salmonella poisoning in the last half of 2007 from their pet turtles. No deaths were reported, but dozens of children were treated at hospitals after being infected with salmonella.

The sale of small turtles under 4 inches has been banned in the United States since 1975. Nevertheless, CDC estimates there are two million pet turtles in the country. Reinberg reports that:

According to the report, cases were reported in all but 15 states, with most cases occurring in California, Illinois, Pennsylvania and Texas.

Two of the infected children included a 13-year-old girl and a 15-year-old girl who became stricken after swimming in an unchlorinated in-ground pool owned by the family of the older girl. Two pet turtles, purchased at a South Carolina pet store and owned by the family of the older teen, were allowed to swim in the pool, the CDC reported.

(CDC's Julie) Harris said many people aren't aware of the risk of Salmonella infections from pet turtles. "Only 20 percent of these cases [in the report] said they were aware there was a connection between Salmonella infection and reptile exposure," she said.

Up to 90 percent of turtles carry Salmonella, Harris said. "This is a very serious infection, especially for small children," she added.

The infection is spread from contact with the turtles, but the contact doesn't have to be direct, Harris said. "We have one case where a baby was bathed in a sink that turtle waste was disposed in," she said.

Check out the entire HeathDay story here.

Turtle Breeding

If you have decided to keep your turtles out of doors, in conditions resembling their own natural habitat, and to let them hibernate, chances are your turtles will be comfortable enough in captivity to mate and bear progeny. Obviously, breeding turtles is not for everybody, and only the most adventurous should apply. If you wish to become a turtle breeder, or simply want to let nature take its course, consider the following information:

Most turtles and reptiles (especially snakes), have a hard time adapting to captivity, and it is sometimes difficult to breed them in such conditions. However, if you are highly skilled at taking care of your pets and give the animals a certain degree of freedom, they will think they are in the wild, and hibernate. Most terrestrial turtles, like the box turtle, or the mud turtle, come out of hibernation between March and May, and it is about that time when they begin to mate.

One thing to consider if you own multiple turtles is to make sure they do not become aggressive during that period. Separate smaller turtles from the bigger ones, especially males, since they sometimes have a tendency to bite each other's heads off.

If you are planning on doing this full time, make sure you learn as much as possible about the species you plan to breed, and choose specimens that appear strong and alert as the mating pair. You should not let weak, related, or second generation turtles breed, as it may end up compromising the gene pool and yield deformed hatchlings. Also, mating, especially the formation of the female's eggs is highly stressful and draining, especially when they are just fresh out of hibernation, so keep a close watch on their health and diet.

After mating with the males, the females start looking for a place to lay their eggs. Provide adequate quarters and shelter with plenty of soft soil areas. Make sure there are several places to hide and bask, and that the soft soil areas are surrounded by rocks or logs so that the turtle will feel safe burying her eggs in it. make sure the soil is at least 8 or 9 inches deep, as a turtle can lay up to 5 eggs in that same spot; the eggshells are soft and are made to absorb moisture and heat, and are very fragile, which is why the female buries them. Do not attempt to move the eggs from the holes, but adding a screen mesh cover will help prevent neighborhood dogs, scavengers, and even insects from digging up the eggs. Make sure there is enough moisture going to the soil, add some water yourself if there hasn't been any rain and the soil appears to have dried up.

It should take up to 90 days for the young turtles to hatch, at which time the screen mesh will keep them from wandering out in full view of predators. Hatchlings are very fragile, and since turtles grow at a much slower pace than other domestic animals, you will have to keep them under constant watch, paying close attention to their diet, and making sure they do not get sick. You will also have to make sure each young turtle gets its share of food, and does not fight with the others. Even though the turtles are hatched outdoors, it would be preferable to keep them indoors for at least a year, in a small terrarium.

Here are some web sites, and pages with great info on breeding.

http://www.turtlecare.net/breed.htm

http://members.aol.com/riherps/page3.htm

http://myweb.ecomplanet.com/PICC6224/mycustompage0006.htm

http://www.talktothevet.com/ARTICLES/REPTILES/waterturtlesex.HTM

Another thing to consider before you decide to become a breeder is whether there is enough interest in your are to justify bringing more turtles into the world. Do not assume you can just release them in the wild, even if they are indigenous to the area, as it may upset the balance of the current population. Also, if you think giving them away is the answer, keep in mind that some people will want to take them simply for the novelty factor, and the turtles will eventually be neglected and die. Do your homework before taking your hobby to the next level.